Dave and Nancy Greene
Straight to the Consumer to Survive

Dave and Nancy Greene raise one of the few commercial sheep flocks in Maryland. And it's actually profitable.

They manage their flock of South Downs for sale as meat, forgoing the auction or processors in favor of direct marketing of freezer lamb to the consumer. About 65% of their lambs go directly to the consumer. The flock of 65 ewes are bred year-round. Using feed lot and grain, they can bring a newborn lamb to 110 pounds in four months. That allows them to maintain a steady cash flow, although there is usually a concentration of breeding in the fall, so there are more spring lambs for those who want lamb at Easter.

Nancy Greene sees this raising and selling strategy as a good one for farmers concentrating on the meat breeds to follow.

"We sell directly to the consumer, and we set the price for what we get for the lamb. It's a case of the price taker versus the price setter. We know what it costs to produce a lamb. So we charge what it costs plus a reasonable profit."

Nancy finds that customers like the one-on-one service she provides. "I spend a lot of time with each customers. There's a lot of word-of-mouth referral. We ship to the processor free-of-charge, and the customer picks it up there. We have to get the lambs to the processor for the customers," she says, laughing at the image of someone transporting a lamb in their SUV or family sedan.

One reason for the popularity of lamb is the increasing concern about factory farming methods. The popularity of meats raised without extra chemical enhancement appeals to health-conscious consumers. "Buying directly from the farmer, the consumers know what they are getting," Dave says. "We do nothing more than is needed. Drugs, antibiotics - those cost money."

'Organic' is a word that brings a frown from Nancy. The term is defined many different ways by different organizations, the government, and individuals, to the point of being meaningless. While raising free-range and grass-fed animals is very trendy, it's not very practical, at least not for East Coast farmers. She's heard of one person in Maryland who claims her sheep are all grass fed, but "it takes her 8 to 9 months to get a sheep to 100 pounds. You can't make a profit on that."

Dave agrees. "Grain is cheaper than grass in the east, while in the western states, the situation is reversed. Our sheep are grain fed. No lambs are on grass. Only the ewes are maintained on grass."
While the Greenes buy their rams, they breed and raise all of their replacement ewes. "Healthwise, it is much better if you can keep as closed a herd as possible."

Both Dave and Nancy think the only way the sheep industry is going to survive is to change the emphasis from wool production to meat. "We've been wool-based for the last 200 years," Dave says. "That must change. We have to get away from wool and a reliance of wool as a major source of income," noting that less than 10% of the sheep income in the US comes from wool. "We have to realize that you need to produce a product that the consumers want."

What they don't want is wool. Changing American styles is behind a lot of that. "People aren't going to work in suits and formal clothing any more. They're not buying the high-volume, high-dollar wool products. There's so much good wool available, that if somebody wants good wool, they get it cheaply. Combine that with competition from synthetics, and it's putting a hurt on the wool industry."

The hurt is so severe that there was no wool pull in Maryland in 1999. Dave managed the pull for 13 years and is involved in organizing the pull for 2000. Prices are not any better than in past years, but he's encouraging farmers to participate, just to get rid of the stockpiles. They have over 1600 pounds of wool stored themselves.

On the other hand, the potential for marketing lamb for food is great. "We have a window of opportunity to change the infrastructure of the industry. It's going against tradition, and tradition has played a big part in the sheep industry. The majority of sheep are in the west, which is primarily wool-based. But with the loss of the Wool Act, that must change, and we must move into meat animals. The status quo is not an option."

Nancy agrees. Right now, the per capita consumption of lamb is only one pound per person. But she points out that changes in population and lifestyle can both be used to sheep-growers' advantage.

"There's a lot of growth in Middle Eastern and Hispanic populations, both of which use more lamb than other groups. That's been good for the sheep market on both coasts. And there's a lot of potential in marketing ready prepared and small portions, value-added packaging, and semi-prepared foods that can be cooked in the microwave."

She notes that up to 45% of all meals in the US are now started by young people, school-aged kids at home. "It's got to be something that's simple."

Better marketing and availability are also important. Lamb does not have a high awareness factor in the minds of consumers. Grocers are reluctant to carry it because it doesn't move, and it doesn't move because consumers are not aware of it or can't find it. It's a frustrating cycle.

"One market in Baltimore gets around that by taking lamb that is close to its sell-by limit and cooks it and makes take-home meals. He puts that out and sells that. Lamb burgers, that sort of thing. He takes a leg and cuts it up and makes a small roast. Then all you have to do is pop it into the oven."

Another option is to work with researchers to develop ways of packaging that will allow meat to have a shelf life of up to one year. That would make it more attractive for grocers to stock. Test packaging is underway at some labs.

Dave and Nancy are deeply involved in the lamb industry, both locally and nationally. Nancy is President of the Baltimore County Sheep and Wool Producers Association. Dave is a member. He's also a senior advisor for the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival, and on the Executive Board of the American Sheep Industry Association. As Region 1 representative, he's spokesman for the 25 states east of the Mississippi. He's a liaison and advisor for the Maryland Sheep Breeders Association and retired last year from the faculty of the University of Maryland College of Agriculture.

They also participate in the Baltimore County Lamb Grant Project. "This gives kids in housing developments and suburbia a chance to come to the farm two days a week to work with lambs. They show them at the county fair. After the lambs are sold, the kids repay the committee for its expenses and pay the feed bill to the farmers. They're encouraged to go out and find buyers for their lamb and to keep records."

It's not an easy project to be accepted into. "The kids must write an essay and be interviewed by the livestock committee, so the committee can see if there's real interest. It's also a commitment for the parents, who have to truck the kids out to the farm for the duration of the project."

But the Greenes see this as important. It teaches suburban children, many of whom never imagine that meat comes any way other than pre-packaged in the Winn-Dixie, some basics of agriculture and business.

With so much going on, how do they avoid burnout? "We're just geared to working like this," Nancy says.

"I guess there's always some degree of burnout," Dave says. "We try to move from one thing to another. You try to cut back on some things and try to refocus. Overall, we have been committed to the sheep industry for a long time."

"We both have the interest," agrees Nancy. "That's the key."
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